Dictionary

homelessness en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈhəʊm.ləs.nəs/

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *ḱóymos Proto-Indo-European *teḱ- Proto-Indo-European *-éyti Proto-Indo-European *tḱéytibf. Proto-Indo-European *tḱey- Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *tḱóymos Proto-Germanic *haimaz Proto-West Germanic *haim Old English hām Proto-Indo-European *lewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der. Proto-Germanic *leusaną Proto-Germanic *lausaz Proto-Germanic *-lausaz Proto-West Germanic *-laus Old English -lēas Old English hāmlēas Middle English *homles English homeless Proto-Germanic *-in- Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ti Proto-Germanic *-ōną Proto-Germanic *-inōną Proto-Indo-European *-dyé- Proto-Germanic *-atjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *-assuz Proto-Germanic *-inassuz Proto-West Germanic *-nassī Old English -nes Middle English -nesse English -ness English homelessness From homeless + -ness.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) The state of being homeless.
   • Houseless and Homeless. The estimate of the New York Housing Conference Secretary, Mr. Edward P. Doyle, that it will take half a billion dollars to overcome the present housing shortage, is probably not an exaggerated presentation of the plight New York is in in this respect. Furthermore, the housing-shortage conditions of New York reflect, proportionately, the conditions prevalent in almost every large city in the country. We seem to be threatened with widespread houselessness and homelessness, for the pitiable makeshifts to which so many are driven by house shortage, and the consequent exorbitant rents, are appalling travesties of what American homes should be. Just what Mr. Walter Stabler, Comptroller of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, meant when he said that "unless radical action is taken something drastic will happen," is not quite clear. "Something drastic" is a pretty vague term. Mr. Stabler could hardly mean riotous invasions of the premises of the "ins" by infuriated mobs of the "outs." Houselessness is undoubtedly a breeder of lawlessness, but it is not open to direct-action remedies of the bread riot variety which sheer hunger not infrequently precipitates. If people have not a place to lay their heads at night, not because they are penniless but because there are no roofs to shelter them, about the only thing they can do is to camp in parks and suburban fields. It has even come to that in Newark, and it may come to that elsewhere unless there is relief of some sort. 1920 June 26, Harvey's Weekly, volume 3, number 26, page 14:
   • The devastating effect of the violence is illustrated by the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe of the 1994 Rwandan genocide that caused deaths, homelessness, despair, poverty, political instability, and economic stagnation in this country. 2007, Gabriel Andrew Msoka, “General Conclusion”, in Basic Human Rights and the Humanitarian Crises in Sub-Saharan Africa: Ethical Reflections (Princeton Theological Monograph Series; 74), Eugene, Or.: Pickwick Publications, Wipf and Stock Publishers, →ISBN, page 169:

Forms

Deriveds

political homelessness · antihomelessness · existential homelessness

Translations (41)

de Heimatlosigkeit (state of being homeless) · el αστεγία (state of being homeless) · es sintechismo (state of being homeless) · de Hauslosigkeit (state of being homeless) · fr sans-abrisme (state of being homeless) · lb Wunnengslosegkeet (state of being homeless) · io senhemeso (state of being homeless) · cmn 無家可歸 /无家可归 (state of being homeless) · ka უბინაობა (state of being homeless) · ru бездо́мность (state of being homeless) · nb heimløshet (state of being homeless) · nb hjemløshet (state of being homeless) · pl bezdomność (state of being homeless) · ja ホームレス (state of being homeless) · de Obdachlosigkeit (state of being homeless) · ka უპატრონობა (state of being homeless) · mi kāingakoretanga (state of being homeless) · pt desabrigo (state of being homeless) · hu hajléktalanság (state of being homeless) · ko 홈리스니스 (state of being homeless) · sv hemlöshet (state of being homeless) · eo senhejmeco (state of being homeless) · mk бездомништво (state of being homeless) · cs bezdomovectví (state of being homeless) · ka უსახლკარობა (state of being homeless) · es situación de calle (state of being homeless) · it senza fissa dimora (state of being homeless) · fi kodittomuus (state of being homeless) · cmn 露宿街頭 /露宿街头 (state of being homeless) · nb bostedsløshet (state of being homeless) · fr itinérance (state of being homeless) · fi asunnottomuus (state of being homeless) · yo àìrílégbé (state of being homeless) · de Wohnungslosigkeit (state of being homeless) · nn heimløyse (state of being homeless) · es sinhogarismo (state of being homeless) · da hjemløshed (state of being homeless) · ms tunawisma (state of being homeless) · tr evsizlik (state of being homeless) · cy digartrefedd (state of being homeless) · es indigencia (state of being homeless)